Sliding Door lock stuck

On cold days (under 30F) my sliding door does not unlock. I have read a few posts regarding similar issues but have not seen anyone who has had a resolution.

Just to be clear........The seal around the door not the problem.........Power lock does not work, and can't unlock the door manually. I applied a heat gun to the general area of the latch to speed up the heating process (normally I have to wait until the cab warms up for a while) and the door latch worked.

This is the only lock/latch I have had this issue with. Has anyone found resolution to prevent this from happening?

What kind of lubricant would be best to try (if that's the answer)?

Latch hard to get to from the inside (even with panel off). Take it out and lubricate, and reinstall?

Any thought out there?

i don't imagine there is any sort of adjustment on the cable that runs from the hook latch at the bottom of the sliding door to the actuating handles, interior and exterior, is there ?

my inside door finger latch could use more travel in unlatching the door from the inside.

not a real issue to me, but "other people" complain they can't open door from inside.

Just wondering if anyone knew of an adjustment available.

DorSki said:

...
Just to be clear........The seal around the door not the problem.........

Any thought out there?

Click to expand...

Water freezes at 32F. Problems below 30F.... ?

My side door was sticking in cold weather. I cleaned the rubber seal and coated it with a very thin film of silicone grease. My door no longer sticks. That was years ago.

OK. Lube the latch mechanism? I've had good success using the red straw and WD-40 in cases like this. WD-40 won't hurt anything so just stick the straw in where you think it may help and spray around. Some claim WD-40 is not a lubricant. In my experience it is a light hydocarbon based lubricant (diesel) that works pretty well when not out in the elements where it can get washed away. In cases like door latches it also may soften and move around some of the original lube that remains.

Good luck. vic

I had a cable snap inside my door. I couldn't open the door from the inside. I fixed it, no problem. You have access to everything pretty quickly by taking off the door panel and the inside handle/latch. I would just lube everything with standard white grease until the problem goes away. Maybe some water got in there.

I have the same problem, the only way into my van is to use a hair dryer. There has to be a solution and so far I for nothing. It's definitely not the seal gasket around the door. My only thought is the actuator or motor assembly I the door, once it reaches a certain temperature just can't fully function... I hope somebody has some useful suggestions. It's getting bloody cold up here.

Sambow said:

I have the same problem, the only way into my van is to use a hair dryer. There has to be a solution and so far I for nothing. It's definitely not the seal gasket around the door. My only thought is the actuator or motor assembly I the door, once it reaches a certain temperature just can't fully function... I hope somebody has some useful suggestions. It's getting bloody cold up here.

Click to expand...

Where are you applying the hair dryer?

Also, you didn't say whether your sliding door lock is electric. If so, make sure the contacts are real clean so it has enough power from the battery to unlock.

It also doesn't hurt to open it up and find out what is sticking and maybe the grease inside turns rock hard at those temperatures. Maybe a lower temperature grease?